Coal power emissions in the US are even higher than we thought

Coal is a disaster in environmental terms, from the destruction caused by mining it to the planet-warming carbon dioxide emitted when it is burned. Now it turns out even just transporting the stuff around is having a significant climate impact.

Carbon emissions from transporting coal by rail to power stations are around three times greater than previous estimates, according to a study by John Sherwood of Clemson University, South Carolina and colleagues. In the worst cases, an extraordinary 35 per cent of overall CO2 emissions from coal use came from …